Automatic air vent valve



Mmh 30,1943. EP, Emis v.2,314,963

AUTOMATIC AIR VENT VALVE Filed May 28, 1940 EZ fd Zeb@ L5 Patented Mar. 30, 1943 AUTOMATIC am VENT vALvE Eems r. zum., chic o, nl., minor te The Dole Valve Company, hicago, Ill.,

tion of Illinois a corpora- Application May 28, 1940, Serial No. 337.643

` 2 claims. (ci. 1st-12a) This invention relates to automatic air vent valves and has for its object to provide a new and improved valve ot this description.

The invention has as a further object to prothe radiators. the radiators being substantially full o1' water, the ordinary steam radiator air vent is not adaptable. One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an automatic airvent which is arranged so that it will automatically vent the air from the hot water heating system radiators and will at the same time pre' vent the escape of the water. The invention has as a further object to provide a device of this kind 4 which stops the escape oi' the water by hygroscopic material enclosed in the valve and arranged so that` this hygroscopic material may be removed and replaced while the valve is in position on the radiator and without permitting the escape of waterfrom the radiator.

The invention has other objects which are more particularly pointed out in the accompanying description.

Referring now to the drawing, there is illustrated an air vent valve having a casing I with a threaded nipple 2 by means of which it is attached to the radiator. This nipple is provided with a passageway 3 which communicates by a passageway 4, smaller in diameter, with a chamber 5 in the casing. There is a valve seat 6 at the point where the passageway 3 connects with the passageway 4. Within the passageway 3 is a valve member 'I which may be of any suitable i'orm and is here shown as a ball valve member. Within the passageway 3 there is elastic means for elastically pressing this valve member against the seat 6, such means being herein shown as a spring 8. The spring 8 is held in position in any desired manner, as by means of a shoulder 9 connected with the nipple 2 -and which the end of the spring engages. This shoulder may be integral with the nipple 2, as shown.

The passageway 3 is provided with the enlargement 3a near its outer end near the shoulder 9, having its greater diameter near the shoulder and being provided with an outwardly diverging wall Iii. The passagewayhas the portion 3b beyond the shoulder 9. smaller in diameter than the portion 3a. The spring 8 is prefvolutions decreasing in diameter from the shoul-v l der toward theyalve member. The valve member 'I is rlrst inserted and then the spring inserted, the spring-being twisted to decrease its diameter, so that it can be pushed through the part 3b of the passageway and when its end gets beyond the shoulder 9, it expands and engages the shoulder, so as to hold it and the valve member in position. The spring and valve member may be of any desired material, but I prefer to have them made of bronze.

'I'he casing I is provided with one or more vent openings II which communicate with the chamber 5. Located in the chamber 5 is the hygroscopic material I2 which may be in any desired form and of any suitable hygroscopic materiaLthat is material that expands when wet and contracts when dry. I prefer to have this material in the form of Va washer with a central opening therethrough'. I

Within the chamber 5 of the casing is a closing plug I3 which preferably has a screwthreaded engagement with the casing. This plug has a valve engaging member I4 which extends through the hygroscopic material I2 and into the passageway 4 and which has a shoulder I5 which engages the hygroscopic material, so that when inserted the proper amountv in the casing, it coni-Ines the hygroscopic material between the shoulder I5 and the shoulder I6 on the casing. This valve engaging member I4 is of such length that when in proper position so that the hygroscopic material when dry will let the air pass, the member I4 engages the valve member 'I and holds it the proper distance from its seat 6, compressing the spring 8, so that there is an open passageway from the radiator through the passageway 3 and passageway 4 and the vent opening II.` It will be seen that the plug I8 and projection I4 and resilient means 8 cooperate to form an adjusting device for adjusting the position of the valve member 'I with relation to its seat so-as to vary the size of the opening leading from the inlet passageway to the chamber E and that, the movement or the plug to adjust the valve member 1, simultaneously varies the compression upon the hygroscopic material I2 so that the proper adjustment between the amount of hygroscopic material and the size of the opening controlled by the valve member to v permit the escape of air and to prevent the eserably in the form of a spiral spring having its lower end engaging the shoulder 9 and its concape of water through the device may be ascertained. This will be readily seen by considering the parts as they are being assembled. Before the plug I3 is placed in position the valve memiber l is contacting its seat I so as to completely close the connection between the passageway 3 and the chamber l and vent openings II. The hygros' opic material I2 is then placed in position in the chamber B and the plug I3 with its valve engaging member I l is screwed into the casing I. The shoulder IB on the plug I3 engages the hygroscopic material and compresses it against the shoulder I3 of the casing.

The valve engaging member Il then contacts the valve member l. At this time the opening controlled by the valve member is completely closed. A further movement of the plug I3 causes the valve engaging member to move the valve member 'l and simultaneously vary-- the compression upon the hygroscopic material. The plug I3 may be moved in or out until the proper adjustment is secured.

A proper amount oi' hygroscopic material must erly compressed the valve member 'I is spaced a short distance from its seat so as to control the flow of the water into the chamber l. 'I'he closing plug I 3 is provided with some means by which it may be moved through the agency of a tool.

As herein shown, there is a slot I3a for this purpose.

The use and operation of my invention are as follows.

When the device is attached to a hot water radiator, the parts are in assembled position substantially such, for example, as is shown in the drawing. When water is inserted in the radiator it drives out the air and the air passes out through the air vent II. When the radiator is illled with water some of the water passes through the passageway 3 and into the passageway 4 and contacts with the hygroscopic material I 2, causing this material to swell and close of! any passage of water from the radiator out through the air vent Il. When air accumulates in the radiator, so that air is in contact with the hygroscopic material, this material then dries out and opens up the connection to the outside atmosphere so as to let the air escape.l When the water contacts with the hygroscopic material the escape of water is prevented.

When it is desired to have access to the hygrol scopic material, as, for example, to remove it and any other action desired taken. When the hygroscopic material is replaced or a new portion thereof put in position, the plug I3 is then inserted and screwed down until the valve member 'I is opened.

I claim: l. An automatic air vent valve for hot water radiators comprising a casing having a chamber therein, an air vent connecting said chamber with the outside atmosphere, a passageway leading from the chamber to the exterior of the casing and having an enlarged outer portion with an outwardly diverging wall, a shoulder at the end of the enlarged portion of the passageway, a valve member in said passageway, a seat for said valve member, a spring in said passageway which presses said valve member toward said seat, said spring engaging said shoulder, hygroscopic material in said chamber so arranged as to control flow through said casing, a removable closing plug in said chamber, and a valve engaging member on said closing plug which projects past the hygroscopic material and which engages said valve member to hold it from its seat during normal operation of the device so that ali:` may escape through said casing and Water be prevented from escaping therethrough.

2. An automatic air valve vent device comprising a casing having a chamber therein, an air vent connecting said chamber with the outside atmosphere, an inlet passageway connecting with said chamber. a movable valve member in said casing located in said inlet passageway, a seat for said valve member, resilient means engaging s aid valve member for resiliently pressing it towards its seat, hygroscopic material -located in said chamber and having an opening extending' therethrough, an adjustable imperforate plug in said chamber, shoulders on said casing and said plug engaging said hygroscopic material and between Whichysaid hygroscopic material is compressed, a projection connected with said plug and extending through said opening and engaging said valve member, said plug and projection and resilient means forming an adjusting device for adjusting the position of said valve member with relation to its seat so as to vary the size of the opening leading from the inlet passageway into said chamber, the movement of said plug to adjust said valve member simultaneously varying the compression upon said hygroscopic material, so that the proper adjustment between the amount of hygroscopic material and the size of the opening controlled by said valve member to prevent the escape of water through the device maybe ascertained.

EDWARD P. ZELNIS. 

